Pierre Victoire – French Restaurant & Bistrot — Restaurant in Oxford

A.A. Gill I am not, but I'm a keen cook (Diana Henry, Nigel Slater et al) and believe myself a good judge of service and food. I'm used to cooking three courses for two or twenty. I've no idea why these recent reviewers have given five stars. Twenty-five years ago Pierre Victoire was a decent little chain delivering reliably good French food. This is not the case with this place. It opens at 6pm and, although I understand they must have plenty of diners (going to the nearby Oxford Playhouse or whatever), they certainly don't know what good service is. On arrival last Friday 12th July, we were ushered to a table but then thought we'd rather sit by the window; however we couldn't straightaway tell our smile-less waitress as within seconds she had already moved on to the next couple so we had to wait. I think we ordered the house red; it was delivered very quickly and the wine waiter was friendly. It was pleasant. The (different) waiter who took our food order was completely smile-less and had a strong accent so I had to listen really carefully. I ordered the escargots. They came within about ten minutes (the whole evening I felt they were trying to get us out asap) and weren't very hot or garlicky. I was given a normal fork rather than the special snails one; a small detail but I'm not entirely sure these guys know what they're doing. About fifteen minutes after our starters, our mains arrived. The side of haricots verts was lacklustre and lacked crunch/flavour. I had ordered the steak frites. Now I know many people find steak tricky to do well but it should be a chef's bread and butter. I had ordered mine 'medium'. It arrived rarer than medium rare. Often if a steak I've ordered arrives truly 'medium rare' I eat it anyway, but this was inedible. Mercifully the (now smiling) waitress agreed with me and sent it back. Fifteen minutes later (why so long? We needed to leave for a play) she returned with a new one (not sure I needed that when I'd eaten a good number of frites already). This time it was cooked medium - but at least a third of it was pure gristle and disgusting. Where did they buy these cuts of meat? Sweeney Todd's parlour? As they'd taken so long to deliver it I had to wolf it down. Finally, it took us a while to flag down a waiter for the bill. And then they charged us £100 plus with a service charge! The divine, 5-star (in my view) Cafe Zedel off Piccadilly charges c. £85 for two people for stunning food and drink. I'm giving 2 (rather than 1) stars because they were very apologetic about the steak, and knocked £5 off our bill, though come to think of it, £10 would have...

Piere Victoire is a lovely family-owned French restaurant serving delicious traditional French cuisine at an affordable price (including some exquisite wine) with an unpretentious environment. It is good food made with fresh ingredients that has a feeling of home and comfort.

For entre I had seared swordfish with a potato, shallot and chive mayonnaise salad accompanied by wasabi cream. I know what you are thinking wasabi in a French restaurant? I thought the same, but recently wasabi has been penetrating the French food scene and Piere Victoire is a great example of why. Individually the components of the dish are threads of a tapestry, where the true beauty of the dish is only perceivable when they are all woven together. The delicate balance of mild sweetness of the swordfish and shallot is beautifully cut through with the bright freshness of the wasabi cream. This dish redefines expectations of how wasabi can be used, showcasing its versatility to integrate into French cuisine.

If the previous course was akin to Swan Lake; graceful, delicate, and elegant the main course is like La Tosca. Intense, unapologetic and deep in its flavours. I had the rabbit leg that was slow braised served with pommes puree, glazed carrots and Dijon mustard sauce. The decadent mustard sauce was full bodied and elevated the nuttiness of the tender rabbit. The carrots harmoniously brought sparks of sharp sweetness along with pickled onions that counteracted the bombardment of umami that gushed from the rest of the dish. This was course of triumph, braisant in its attitude and construct.

For desserts I wanted to try the crème brulee as the smell of the caramel intoxicated the restaurant. However, they were sold out, if it tastes half as good as it smelled I am sure it would be a winner. My friend and I shared a chocolate fondu instead with fresh fruits and marshmallows. I guess after such a rich meal we should not be so glutenous for more. The fresh strawberries and pineapple dipped in dark chocolate perfectly closed the book on a lovely experience.

In total, Piere Victorie lives up to its name. A true victory for French cuisine that is approachable; tearing down the pretentiousness that surrounds it. A must stop restaurant when you are visiting Oxford. Well...

Summary: I was disappointed, yet the place is acceptable.

Went spontaneously on a Saturday since I was in the area and read the other (great) reviews. The place was busy and the staff was friendly. Champagne decent priced for the quality (6£ a glas, would have been the double in Sweden). The bread was horrible though, just ordinary white that you buy at the supermarket, and in my opinion a French restaurant should be able to do better.

Had the snails for starters - tasteless and boring. Main was a tonight's special, on recommendation from the staff - lamb on the bone served with gravy, boils carrots and couscous mixed with a mint-tasting herb. The lamb was nicely done, tender and soft. Combined with the gravy it was a nice taste, yet nothing I'll remember in the morning. The couscous was however severely dry and the whole dish gave the impression of lacking something essential in terms of taste, yet I can not put my finger on it. Perhaps a crispy cold salad with some vinegar, in order to "break of" the heaviness of a nicely cooked lamb. Chocolate fondant for desert - total disappointment. It laced the described creaminess inside, either due to containing too much flour or it had been baked for too long. Like I said, disappointment.

I did not complain though, why I cannot say. However, if I had I'm sure the friendly staff would have compensated me somehow, thus the 3 stars and not 2, which I believe would be too harsh. However, my personal recommendation is to take your money elsewhere, since there are better places, french and other, for the same money, both in the area...